Medications have an immense influence on our health and day to day lives. Because of this impact they can be some of our most important possessions and keeping them safe is a priority. Due to the high cost of many medications, some who take medications are concerned about medication theft. Some medications can be extremely expensive, either at the pharmacy or in a second hand market, and these medications become targets for thieves who can sell the medications for profit. Medication theft is a serious issue because not only does it deprive the original owner of his property, it puts his health at risk. Even further, stolen medication often ends up in the hands of those who have not been prescribed or recommended a certain drug. These individuals might then take the medication incorrectly, in situations where it is not advised, or for effects for which it is not intended or recommended. These unauthorized uses of medications can harm the user. For example, they can result in worsening conditions if the medication interacts with a preexisting condition or if the user delays reliable medication in place of self medication. These unauthorized uses can also lead to sickness if the medication has unmonitored side effects. Further, in the case of medications used recreationally, the user can overdose or become dependent. Sadly, in many of these situations, misused medications can even result in death. For these reasons, it is extremely important that medications remain in the hands of the intended recipient. It is in the best interest, not only of the rightful owner of the medication, but also of those ultimately taking the medication, that they are maintained and kept safe.
This concern about theft can cause individuals to hide medications, which makes it more difficult for the intended user to access their own medications. However, preventing theft seems to require that the medications be kept not only somewhere accessible and discrete, but also somewhere fixed and secure, such as a safe or locked cabinet. While this may solve the problem temporarily, a fixed storage spot will not protect the medications during travel away from home, i.e., when the user is away from home for an extended period. Unfortunately, this is often when medications and other possessions are most vulnerable. Taking medications out of the home is unavoidable for some users. For example, individuals who take medications everyday must take them with them every time they travel. Individuals who take medications throughout the day, or at a certain time of day, might need to take medications with them whenever they leave the house. In these situations, keeping medications safe outside of the house is important, too, and can be crucial.
Keeping medications safe from theft is not a user's only concern though. Medications can also be one of the most sensitive items in a home and so for some, keeping medications private and protected is also a priority. For example, certain medications can indicate that the owner has a specific, perhaps embarrassing or at least confidential, medical condition or a medical condition that could cause others to worry. In these situations, owners will likely prefer to keep their medications private.
Yet, in many situations, people need to access medications daily, and/or quickly or when they are weakened and so it is important that these medications are easy to access. The objectives of keeping medications both safe and private, possibly transportable and having them easy to access are sometimes at odds. For example, to ensure accessibility, many people keep their medications in an obvious and unobstructed location, such as on the bathroom counter or in a medicine cabinet, on a bedside table, or a kitchen counter. These obvious locations prevent users from forgetting where they put their medication and help them to take their medications easily in a daily routine. For example, if a person takes a medication every morning, he might leave the medication in a bathroom medicine chest where he can take the medication immediately before or after brushing his teeth and getting ready for the day. Another might leave the medications on a kitchen counter to be taken daily with milk, coffee or meals. Still another might leave them at his bedside to be taken as soon as he wakes up or before he falls asleep. These obvious locations are out in the open so that individuals do not waste time scrambling for the medications when it comes time to take them, but it also leaves them out in the open for prying eyes to see and possible falling into the wrong hands, whether a toddler, teen, or another. To keep medications secure, one will usually keep medications somewhere out of the way or even go so far as to hide them. This can be inconvenient for daily use however since it often requires scrambling for the medications to find them. For example, a common place to put private items is in a drawer. Then, to obtain the items, a person must first move the other items in the drawer. This can be time consuming and stressful if the items are not found right away. Another common hiding place is on a high shelf out of reach. Then, to obtain the items a person must find a step stool or small ladder to get the items down. Further, in the event of an emergency, it makes the medications more difficult for caregivers to find and obtain. A caregiver might not know where a hidden, and in some cases life saving, medication is and this hiding for safety against others' improper use can cause unnecessary delays in treatment.
For these reasons and others, it would be advantageous to have a container that could be placed in an accessible location while still maintaining privacy and safekeeping. A lockable and discrete safe that can be secured in a typical location, such as a medicine cabinet, would solve the issues listed above. Even further, it would be advantageous if the lockable safe is removable and portable, capable of easy travel, and even able to be secured again, in a second location. Even further, it would be advantageous to have a medicine-holdable safe that is accessible via a secure wireless connection from a local network or mobile or smartphone device that provides quick access and an emergency override.